The much-anticipated meeting between Kuki and Meitei community leaders, convened by the Union Home Ministry in New Delhi on Saturday (April 5), failed to break the ice, with the Kuki Zo Council refusing to sign a six-point resolution.
This was the first face-to-face huddle between leaders of the two communities since the outbreak of ethnic violence in the state in May 2023.
The meeting assumed significance as it came close on the heels of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s recent assertion in the Parliament that the Centre was working out an amicable solution to the conflict.
Draft resolution
According to the draft resolution prepared by the Home Ministry, leaders of both the communities were supposed to appeal to members of their own communities to refrain from violence targeting the other community.
They were also to urge the administration to take strong action against perpetrators of violence and “welcome any initiative by the government to facilitate return of internally displaced people to their respective places subject to logistics and arrangements made by the government”, sources privy to it told The Federal.
“Agreed that all long-term and contentious issues will be taken up with the Government of India for resolution through dialogue and consultation with the communities,” read another clause of the draft resolution.
Kukis unhappy with outcome
“We did not agree to any point, as we were not happy with the outcome of the meeting,” Kuki-Zo Council chairman Henlianthang said after the meeting.
The meeting was chaired by the Home Ministry’s North East adviser AK Mishra. Four other officials from MHA, including one joint director from IB, Manipur chief secretary, and the additional director general of Manipur Police were also present.
A six-member delegation from two influential Meitei civil bodies, the All-Manipur United Clubs’ Organisation (AMUCO) and the Federation of Civil Society Organisations (FOCS), and eight representatives of the Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) attended the meeting that continued for about four hours.
Meiteis give consent
The Meitei organisations, however, gave their consent to the six points mentioned in the draft resolution, circulated to representatives of the two communities after the meeting.
“We gave our consent to the resolution,” said Nando Luwang, a representative from the AMUCO.
The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), the most powerful Meitei civil society conglomerate, did not participate in the meeting, calling it a stage-managed spectacle.